LABELLE — People are still looking for a memorial bench that went missing from the grave site of fallen FWC officer Julian Keen.
Keen was killed during a traffic stop in LaBelle last June, and his friends made him a bench by hand to be placed at his grave, emblazoned with a Batman symbol.
That bench has been missing since September 14th, and with no leads as to where it went, a teacher at LeBelle High School said he and his students will do the next best thing: Build Keen a new one.
Keith Armour is the Construction Trades Teacher at LaBelle High School. He said it’s a small community, and a lot of people knew Keen personally. So when he brought up the idea of making a new bench to replace the one that went missing, he said it was emotional.
“They were a little bit somber about it. Even though they’re children, they still understand the implications and the feelings of hurt that go along with something like that," said Armour.
But he said the students agreed that it would be special to build their own memorial for the fallen hero. They started the work Friday, and Armour said they’re excited about the project.
“The kids went ahead and drew up this drawing here to kind of figure out what they were going to do," said Armour.
Armour said they’re hoping to make it so this time, the bench stays where it belongs.
“The students are already talking about some way of fastening down the bench so it doesn’t get stolen again," said Armour.
Armour said it’s not the same as the bench hand-made by Keen’s closest friends, but he hopes it will be just as meaningful.
“Unfortunately, something got taken that shouldn’t have been taken, and we want to make it right, and we want to represent our community in a positive light," said Armour.
Armour said he and his students hope to have that bench complete and back by the side of Keen’s grave by the end of next week.
